Thread: Revelations from Patch 3.5

Regarding MSQ:

I have more thoughts than this, but I kinda just wanna say that I'm nowhere near as down on it as some of you seem to be. That's not to say I thought it was perfect - the necessity of Papalymo's sacrifice was poorly built up to despite the ludicrously anvilicious foreshadowing being my biggest issue - but most of it was well-executed otherwise. I liked how mundane it started, I liked Ilberd's false flag plan, and I didn't feel like the game was forcing us into stupidity, despite how things shook out. And as for the grief - sorry guys, I'm really not seeing the issue. I didn't get the sense that it was just shrugged off; Yda had an appropriately emotional reaction, Y'Shtola getting to work right away felt determined rather than callous, and as for everyone else...well, they didn't really know Papalymo all that well, did they? I never really got the sense that he was especially close with anybody but Yda. This game has handled mourning better - Moenbryda - but maybe this was supposed to communicate that with everything else that has happened, the Scions are getting better at channeling pain and grief into forward momentum. I don't think that has to be negative, or unhealthy, and at any rate we haven't even seen all of the fallout from this. And that's if he's dead at all; the game certainly wants us to think he is, but it's not exactly unambiguous, and BOY was this patch ever unambiguous with its slaughter (blood or no blood, the scenes inside Baelsar's wall might be the most brutal thing this game has ever depicted).

So yeah, I'm not gonna be so quick to toss shade at it. Let's see how this actually ends and what the ultimate outcome ends up being.

Main Story Quest

It's a nice touch that you can still see the seal Papalymo created outside the wall, and at night it really does look like a moon. Which leads me to wonder just who created this sealing method and *what* were they trying to seal in the 1st place?

It's already speculated that Zodiark might be on the moon due to the Zodiark statue.But I wonder if the "moon" is actually is actually a prison/seal? That perhaps Hydaelyn or her 1st champions used the same sealing ritual to seal Zodiark?

Originally Posted by Cilia

Plot Details, yo!

It was mentioned by the Word of the Mother (I refuse to call that thing Minfilia) when the schism between Light and Dark happened aeons ago, Zodiark was banished to the heavens to forever remain a "moon bound."

This, combined with the Zodiark statue up there, how it seems to be Elidibus' favorite haunt, and how Hydaelyn is the name of both our planet and Goddess, almost certainly means that the moon is Zodiark - or what's left of him, at any rate. It's not Menphina.

Who exactly created that sealing spell? Why does it so closely resemble Dalamud? Who knows. I was of the mind that the original spell used by Louisoix was also a time spell - rewinding time so that Bahamut was still imprisoned in Dalamud, but apparently that's not the case.

Main Scenario

I wonder if the sealing spell came first, and the Allagans made Dalamud in it's image?

On the mystery primal:

Current evidence seems to point to either Rhalgr, Shinryu, or Griever. Note that even if it isn't called Rhalgr, the primal could still be an avatar of the Destroyer (in Ilberd's mind), if you consider Ramuh to be the Sylph's interpretation of Rhalgr.

Shinryu seems possible because of Omega's connections to it in prior games. Ilberd also said he wanted to summon something greater than Bahamut, and was holding Nidhogg's eyes. Midgardsormr, the father of the two aforementioned great wyrms, looked a lot like Shinryu. Not only that, but he also led the first victory against the Garlean invasion at the cost of his "life."

As for Griever, it kinda looks like demonic griffin (or at least lion/demon hybrid). The Griffin did say he shall be a demon instead. Plus during the fight his big attack was called "Lionhead/Lionheart". And with all the Hindu themes associated with Stormblood, Griever would correspond well with Narasimha, whose "divine anger" probably resonates with Ilberd's attitude.

MSQ

What I'm wondering is if Papalymo's spell would alter the primal being formed... possibly taking over the aether and forming a different primal?

The other thing that comes into mind is that the barrier will diffuses the aether gathered, essentially aborting the primal before it can form

And somehow, all this happened before, and it will all happen again...

I just have one question : what happened with the second Griffin seen in 3.4?

Originally Posted by Garnix

I just have one question : what happened with the second Griffin seen in 3.4?

Who knows? Maybe as the actual Griffon stepped into the forefront to enact his plan, he stepped back into being another average member of the resistance? Maybe he'll keep up the charade and become a leader in his own right? Or do so on his own without the Griffon's imagery? Or maybe he'll never be addressed ever again.